Profiles and Accounts
This help file explains everything you need to know about profiles and accounts.
A profile
A profile is the basic building block of GoDoChurch. When you add someone into your database we call that adding a profile for that person. This includes their name, contact information, and involvement in the church. It is important to note that this person does not yet have an account with GoDoChurch. It just means their basic information is stored in the system.
An account
In order for a person to be able to log into your GoDoChurch database or use the mobile app, they need an account. Accounts can be created in two ways: 1) an administrator can create an account for a profile directly from the admin system, or 2) a person can create an account for themselves by signing up on the GoDoChurch mobile app. When an administrator creates an account for a staff member they set the username and password (which can be edited later). If a person creates an account for themselves via the app then they choose their own username and password.
Q. If a person creates an account and profile on the mobile app, how is this info linked to pre-existing profiles in a GoDoChurch database?
Note: what follows is only relevant if your church is using the mobile app. If you are not using the mobile app you can ignore this section for now.
A. Consider the following scenario: an administrator signs up for a GoDoChurch database and then proceeds to create profiles for each member in their church. Let's say one of those members is called Bob. At this stage, Bob has a profile in GoDoChurch which contains his basic contact information, but Bob doesn't yet have an account. A few days later, Bob downloads the app and creates an account (because the app requires an account to use), and he also takes the opportunity to populate his profile in the app. The question is: how do we link Bob's preexisting profile in GoDoChurch (with all his contact info and church involvement) with the account and profile Bob just created via the mobile app? The answer is GoDoChurch does this for you automatically. We use Bob's last name and email address to search for a match in your database, and if we find one we merge his new account with the pre-existing profile.
Merging profiles in the database with the profiles people create via the app is absolutely critical in order to have the app and database stay in sync with one another.
Q. What happens if someone uses a different email to create an account via the app?
A. If someone creates an account and profile via the app using a different email address than the one in the profile in the GoDoChurch database, then you will end up with duplicate profiles in your system - one profile with no account associated with it, and another profile with an account associated with it.
It goes without saying that duplicates are undesirable in your database, and you should work hard to avoid them. For tips on how to avoid and manage duplicates in your database read Managing duplicates profiles in your database.
Creating an account from within the admin system
If you are an administrator and you would like to grant someone access to your database, the first step is to create an account for the person. To create an account:
Use the quick search box to open the profile of the person.
Click the Account tab.
If no account has been created for the person you will see a button that says Create an account for this user.
Fill in an email and password for them and click Create Account. Note: you will need to send them this info in order for them to be able to access the system. Don't worry, they can change their password later.
An email will now be sent to this person asking them to verify their email address.
Once you have created an account, click Assign Permissions so you can set the permission levels of the person.
Once you have done all this, send an email to the person inviting them to log into the system at admin.godochurch.com and enter the email and the password you set for them.
We recommend the person log in and immediately change their password.
Creating an account from the mobile app
- Download and open the GoDoChurch app.
Register an account through the app.
An email will be sent to you asking you to verify your email address. Click the link in that email.
You now have an account with GoDoChurch!
Note: your permission levels will be set to 'Public'. This gives you very limited access to the admin system but will allow you to use the app. If you need a higher permission level ask your church administrator.
FAQ
For more info on accounts and profiles, check out our FAQ re accounts and profiles.